Sliding window



I Ju ne 9, 1931.

r-:. w. COT'IER SLIDING WINDOW Filed Aug. 11. 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet l June 1931; E. w. COTTER SLIDING wmnow Filed Aug. '11. 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 j .R w .4 E2 t 5 y I QQQ.

Patented June 9, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ERNEST WILLIALI COTTER, OF LONDON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO 3'. STONE & COMPANY LIMITED, OF DEPTFORD, ENGLAND, A COMPANY OF GREAT BRITAIN SLIDING WINDOW Application filed August 11, 1930, Serial No. 474,648, and in Great Britain September 9, 1929.

This invention comprises improvements in and connected with sliding Windows and is particularly concerned with sliding Windows used as deckhouse lights on boardship. In

5 windows of this type it is frequently desirable to use a frameless pane of plate glass as the sliding light or sash, also it is desirable to provide tightening devices, such as screws or wedge devices, for enabling the pane to is be pressed against a resilient seating particularly in the fully closed position in which it is necessary for the pane to make a weathertight joint with such seating. Usually, the sliding light moves up and down in vertical guides in the frame and is counter-balanced by for example, one or more spring drums flexibly connected with such light.

It is very desirable that the tightening devices be capable of pressing the pane evenly and tightly against the seating without risk of breakage and that the said tightening devices shall be compact, simple and fool-proof so that they occupy little space and cannot be put out of order or be mishandled by careless operators. Further, it may be desirable, in some cases, to provide mechanical gearing for raising and'lowering the pane instead of relying upon the application of a hand directly to a handle on the glass for performing this operation.

According to these improvements the sliding light or glass pane is movable up and down in guide grooves in side bars, the grooves being suitably lined with felt orcushioning material, and the side bars have a wedging engagement with the frame whereby a. slightraising or lowering ofthe bars effects a. lateral movement of the light towards or away from a rubberor other seating surrounding the window opening in the frame. By thismeans, separate wedge bars are dispensed with and the bars employed are combined guide and wedge bars; Owing to the fact that the bars have a lateral movement due to the wedging action and thus move bodily away from,or towards, anoperating gear which is fixedly supported on the frame, provision is made for preserving the operating engagement in any position of lateral adjustment of the bars.

As mechanical means may be desired, in some cases, for opening and closing the light when counter-balanced by a spring drum, such means may be provided in the shape of a simple toothed gearing for rotating the spring drum device. Also, for the purpose of enabling the sliding light to be locked positively in any partly open position, releasable spring detent means may be'suitably mounted so as to be engageable with teethor projections on the spring drum.

' In order to enable the invention to be readily understood, reference is made to the accompanying drawings illustrating one constructionembodying these improvements, in which drawings I Figure 1 is a rear elevation of a window, such as a deck house light, embodying these improvements.

Figure 2 is across section on the line 11- II of Figure 1. I

Figure 3 is a side elevation looking from the left hand side of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a central vertical sectional elevation to a larger scale;

Figure 5 shows a modification.

The window frame a, which may be of cast metal, or of extruded channel section metal, or of other suitable construction, is formed in each of its vertical side members with inclined slots or grooves Z), Figures 2 and 3. The channel formations of these side members serve as housings for combined guide and wedge bars 0 which are grooved or of U-section, see also Figures 2 and 3. The guide groove in each bar 0 is lined with felt (Z for cushioning the edge portion of the pane e which is slidable therein. Each bar 0 is formed on its outer side with wedges 0, these being elongated projections having the same inclination as the slots or grooves 7). The latter, however, are of greaterlength than the wedges 0, so that thelatter can have a limited travel from end to end of the slots Z) in which they engage. the pane e is received in a lined groove in a bar or holder f which is connected by a chain or steel tape 9 with the spiral pulley h of a spring drum weight of the light or sash. The two barsc The lower edge of j which counterbalances the are raised or lowered equally and simultaneously by gearing which, in the example shown, is a toothed rack gearing and comprises a cross shaft mounted in suitable bearings Z on the frame and having a projecting square end is to receive a crank handle or key. Two toothed segments or wheels m are fixed on the shaft is one near each end of the latter, and these mesh with rack teeth n formed on, or attached to, the lower portions of the bars 0. Thus, by applying a crank handle or key to the square end is of the shaft 70, the latter can be turned in one direction or the other to raise or lower the bars 0, the reaction of the wedges 0 in the slots 6 causing lateral movement bodily of the bars 0. If the bars 0 are raised, they are moved outwards by the wedge, so that the glass pane e in the grooves of the bars is ressed evenly and ti htly against the rubiier or other seating 0 in the frame a. If the bars 0 are lowered, reverse lateral'movement occurs and the pane e is withdrawn from the seating 0. This tightening mechanism may be operated to press the pane 6 against the seating 0 when the pane is in the fully closed position and for the purpose of obtaining a watertight and weather-tight closure, but it may be operated when the pane is in any partly open position, in which casethe pane is prevented from rattling and is held, friction tightly, against unintentional rising or fall- 111 wing to the bodily lateral movement of the bars 0 due to the wedging action, it follows that the racks n will be moved away from or towards the toothed segments m, during any tightening operation. In order to preserve proper meshingof the teeth in spite of such lateral movement, the racks may be formed, or fitted, so that their pitch lines are inclined to the longitudinal axes of the bars. Thus, as seen in Figure 4, the teeth of the racks 71 may be on an incline corresponding with the inclination of the wedges. Or, (Figure 5) the toothed segments m may be cam-shaped and theracks n plane for the samepurpose. The shaft 70 may be operated directly, in the manner described, or through the medium of mechanism such as ahandoperated worm gear.

When the glass pane c or sliding light is counter-balanced by a spring drum, it is usually operated directly by hand,a suitable grip or handle p being fitted for the purpose. In some cases it may be desirable to provide mechanical means for opening and closing the light and this is conveniently done by providing a simple mechanism to rotate the spring drum device j. According to the ex ample illustrated, and as seen clearly in Figure 4, the spring drum, whichrevolves on a stub axle 9 supported by a depending bracket or plate 1" on the framing, may-be formed with teeth 3 around its periphery. A pinion t' in mesh with the teeth 8 is fixed on the stub spindle uof a crank handle 12, the spindle u being revoluble in a suitable bearing to of the bracket r. Thus, the light can be raised by turning the crank handle '0 in one direction and thereby putting more compression on the spring which will have the effect of lifting the window. Or the light can be lowered by turning the crank handle '0 reversely and thereby permitting the light to descend. Naturally, the crank handle. '0 and pinion t can be mounted and connected in other ways. For example, the pinion t may have a hub or spindle running in the bearing w and such hub or spindle may be adapted for the attachment of a crank handle.

In order to lock the sliding light 6 positively in any partly open position to which it has been adjusted, a detent or stop a", Figure 1, may be mounted on the bracket plate a", so as to be engageable with the teeth .9 of the spring drum. In the example illustrated, the detent m is a tooth carried by a plunger 7 working in a small casing z. The plunger y is influenced by a spring 1 which constantly tends to force the detent tooth into engagement with the teeth 8 of the spring drum. The stem of the plunger y may be fitted with a cross pin 2 working in guide grooves and with a knob 3 for enabling the detent to be disengaged by hand. Upon pulling out the knob 3 to disengage the detent, the cross pin 2 emerges from the grooves, whereupon a partial turn of the knob 3 takes the pin 2 out of alignment with the grooves, so that the detent 00' is then retained by the pin 2 in a disengaged condition. IVith the detent thus disengaged, the sliding light 6 can be raised or lowered freely to any desired fully or partly open or closed position. To lock the light in such position, the knob 3' is turned to bring the pin. 2 into line with, the grooves, whereupon the spring 1' shoots the detent into engagement with the teeth 8,

In order to ensure the bottomvhorizontal edge of the sliding window being weathertight when closed, the cross shaft maybe provided with one or more felt covered cams 4, shown in dotted lines in Figure 4, which come'into contact with the glass as the cross shaft is rotated and press the glass on to the rubber seating in the frame at a rate corresponding with the lateral movement of the combined guide and wedge bars.

I claim I 1. Sliding window, particularly of the deckhouse type, comprising a fixed frame, a

sliding light, a seating for said light, bars in which the light is: guided in its sliding movement, rack and pinion operating means for adjusting said bars longitudinally and wedging means. formed upon and en aging direct-- 1y between said; bars and said frame and operative, when said bars are adjusted longitudinally, to produce bodily lateral movement of said bars and the light in relation to said seating.

2. Sliding Window comprising a window frame, a frameless sliding light, a seating for said light, channel shaped guide bars, resilient linings in said bars for receiving the sliding light, consistently meshing rack and pinion adjustment means for shifting said bars in their longitudinal direction and Wedge means formed upon and engaging directly between said bars and said frame and operative, upon longitudinal movement of the bars, to move said bars and the light as a whole laterally of the seating.

3. Sliding Window comprising a Window frame, a sliding light, a seating for said light, channel shaped bars for guiding said sliding light, rack and pinion gear for shifting said bars in their longitudinal direction and Wedge means formed upon and engaging directly between said bars and said frame and operative, upon longitudinal movement of the bars, to move said bars and the light as a Whole laterally of the seating, said rack and pinion having teeth of relatively increasing depth adapted for maintaining proper mesh in spite of the lateral movement of the bars.

4. Sliding Window comprising channel-section frame members, a sliding light, a seating for said light, guide bars for the sliding light disposed in said frame members, consistently meshing rack and pinion adjustment means for shifting said bars in their longitudinal direction and a Wedge and slot connection provided at the outer faces of the bars and the inner faces of the frame members, said connection being operative, upon longitudinal movement of the bars, to move said bars and the light as a Whole laterally of the seating.

5. Sliding Window comprising a frame, a sliding light, guides and a seating for said light, rack and pinion adjustment means for shifting said guides in their longitudinal direction, Wedge means formed upon and engaging directly between said guides ancl said frame and operative, upon longitudinal adjustment of said guides, to move said guides and the light as a Whole laterally of the seatin g, and padded cam means cooperative With the Wedge means for pressing the light against the seating and ensuring a Weathertight fit When the light is closed.

ERNEST WILLIAM COTTER. 

